Media Release | 26 February 2026
Kirrilee Warr MLA
Shadow Minister for Fisheries
The Shadow Minister for Fisheries, Kirilee Warr MLA, says today’s protest rally by fishers at Parliament should compel the Cook Labor Government to rethink its ruinous demersal fishing ban.
Following a petition signed by thousands of Western Australians, and motions in both Houses of Parliament to disallow the ban and rewrite the regulations, placard waving fishers and concerned citizens from across WA’s fisheries sector descended on Parliament to demand a full parliamentary inquiry which examines the entire marine estate.
Speaking at the Rally, Ms Warr said fishers deserved to see the evidence which led to the Government’s overnight decision and they have every right to expect full consultation on an issue which effects their everyday lives.
“Hundreds of decent, hardworking Western Australians — many who rely on fishing for their livelihood — are being forced out of business, and thousands more are being denied the simple cultural right to throw a line in the water and catch a kicker.
“Everyday Western Australians are paying the ultimate price, hitting the hip pocket at the checkout and seeing less locally caught WA seafood on their tables.”
“The knock-on effects of this decision are devastating. Harbours are sitting idle, businesses are going under, and communities are bearing both the financial strain and the mental toll of losing the ability to fish.”
The Government does not need to feel discredited by walking back the ban, Ms Warr says.
“It will show that it is listening and consulting in good faith. It will also allow time for the science to be properly reviewed by all parties and a solution to be identified which has everyone’s understanding.
“Fishers just want a seat at the table; they want their voices to be heard. Let them be part of the solution, not the problem.”
Ms Warr says despite repeated calls and Freedom of Information requests, the Government has still not produced a shred of evidence to confirm that fish stocks are under threat.
“This absence of evidence has communities rightly asking, what is the Government hiding and what are its ulterior motives?”
ENDS
